F1 technology

The 2014 F1 rules limit each driver to just 100kg of fuel per race. This is one of the major challenges of the new rules, forcing teams to use up to 60% less fuel per race without sacrificing performance.

How much fuel a car uses in a race is affected by driving style, car set-up, track conditions and circuit configuration. The chart below, based on figures for fuel consumption per lap issued by Williams last year, gives some insight into the latter.

The data is based on the rate of fuel use with the previous V8 engines, which serves to indicate how far the teams have to reduce their fuel use this year:

How often and how far the drivers will have to lap within the capabilities of themselves and their cars to ensure they reach the chequered flag is one of the critical questions of the year to come. “We don?óÔé¼Ôäót like Formula One to be a sport where you are cruising for 50% of the laps,” warned Ferrari?óÔé¼Ôäós head of engines Luca Marmorini last year.

Limiting the rate of fuel use

For the first time, the rate of fuel use will also be capped. Teams will not be allowed to exceed a fuel intake of 100kg/hour.

This will be monitored by a fuel flow meter such as the one pictured, which is produced by Gill Sensors and homologated by the FIA for use in Formula One and the World Endurance championship. This uses ultrasonic wave pulses to measure how quickly fuel is flowing – the faster the flow, the more quickly the signal is received.

To give an indication of how severe the fuel flow limit it, the table below gives a guide to the average rate of fuel use at races last year. Based on the data above, this graph compares the typical fuel loads for each race with last year’s winners’ finishing times to show the average rate of fuel use.

Keeping in mind that the fuel rate limit being imposed this year is on peak use, not average consumption, it’s clear to see from the data below how severe a reduction we are talking about. The average rate of fuel use suggested below for some races exceeds the peak limit drivers will be allowed to hit in the coming season.

NB. The races at Monte-Carlo, Silverstone, Singapore and COTA were all disrupted by Safety Cars and therefore these figures for rates of fuel consumption will be lower than for an uninterrupted race.

Clearly fuel efficiency will be a major goal in the coming season. Generating too much drag will be a greater disadvantage, potentially obliging teams to reduce their wing angles, and drivers who can save fuel early in the race and push harder at the end will be rewarded.

How will this affect the racing? Will drivers now find it advantageous to sit the in the slipstream of their rivals when they can to save fuel? We can certainly expect to hear a lot more team radio chatter about fuel strategy this year.

You know, I really really heavily despise the double-points rule – it absolutely went against everything that I thought F1 was about. But when it comes to the new regulations regarding fuel saving, I really am not bothered in the slightest. They present a set of engineering problems for the F1 engineers to solve – real world engineering problems with some relevance for a change. The solutions should not necessarily require more money to come about, and they are the same for everyone. Just reading this thread, I found it interesting from an engineering standpoint thinking about torque, acceleration, downforce levels, and race strategy. Time will tell of course if the races end up being all like Monaco 2013, but I suspect not.

If you really want F1 races to be complete, no-holds barred, flat-out sprints from start to finish – well I think we’ve seen that before (2004 comes to mind) and it sucked.

Assuming some standard figures* from car engines (which are obviously going to be off as F1 engines are a bit different), if the engine were naturally aspirated and had no pumping losses they would use a maximum of about 66kg/hr. I think this bodes well. We are talking a decent boost (15psi over atmospheric) from the turbo to get it to use 100kg/hr fuel flow. For comparison, by the same figures, the peak fuel flow for the V8s was about 120l/hr, so the calculation is probably not accurate, but probably not that far off.

The problem I cannot get my head round is that there are no comparisons out there that say a small turbo charged engine is more efficient than a normally aspirated large engine in similar vehicles. People do say theoretically it is true but have yet to prove it.

So it looks like the F1 regs are assuming the ERS system is going to make up the difference.

I am not convinced, therefore I think the races are going to be slower and I also think that some teams are going to struggle to reach the end of the race, assuming of course that with all the new parts they are reliable.

aaaaaaah I seeeeeeee. If a driver had his foot fully down on 18,000 rpm going uphill, the car would burn 100kg an hour, but they never are, so the average for the race l/hr would be considerably less, allowing the limit of a 100kg tank load. It does take some thinking about.

Please allow me to say…. This fuel flow meter thing is useless technology, now why I would say that? Look, all the FIA had to do is to install a standard size fuel hose as a bottle neck, only allow the maximum of fuel flow of 100kg/hr. Problem solved. If you want less fuel flow, make them use a narrower fuel hose!!!! No meter is needed!

with the use if V6 instead of V8s you will reduce full by 30% .At different tracks you will need different amounts of fuel so to put a 100kgs limit i do not know how it will work. When you consider that a F1 race lasts ..what 2 hrs this is nothing compared to nascar with 40 cars driving for 4 hours OMG they must use heaps of petrol. Do you realy think that F! racing with reduced fuel laws will save our plant …..just a stupid rule

When races are decided after the race in a room based on technicalities outside the control of the driver … and not on the race track we all lose.
Any one remember the legal arguments after each American Cup yacht race to decide who won based on what technicality was broken ??
Did you stop watching ?
I did, along with many others. Because it was no longer a race where the best sailors won.
When F1 is no longer won on the track by the drivers I will do the same.